Highlight's of Emma's 8th Month with us:
To celebrate Emma's 9-month birthday we decided to go all out - we figured it was high time the girl took a 5.5 hour flight across the country to dip her feet into the Pacific Ocean. So we took her to Victoria, British Columbia. One day I will move here permanently... but that's another blog. As is the trip. Right now we're talking about the accomplishments of Month 8. Back on point..
In month 8, E is suddently no longer a baby, but a real live PERSON. Just a person without words. And since there are no words, there are a lot of whines. I'm hungry... I'm dirty... I'm tired. But sadly she can't SAY any of this. So she cries until we go down the list & finally get it right. Fortunately the list is pretty limited, it normally doesn't take too long.
Emma has been sleeping through the night since she's been two months old. I've made the mistake of gushing about this to all my friends, some acquaintaces, and the odd cashier. Suddenly, out of nowhere, the little brat has decided to start waking up EVERY NIGHT between 2 and 3:00 am. The drill is as follows: I'm sleeping soundly, monitor beside my head. Monitor continually bashes into the side of my skull until I get up and walk down a whole flight of stairs to rescue my daughter from whatever is so clearly torturing her. Usually we go into the guest room & I feed her till she falls back asleep on my boob and I drop her back off in her crib. Sometimes she'll stay asleep till morning, but usually she'll start freaking out again 20 minutes later (just as I'm settling back to sleep) & then I'll just fetch her & drop her in our bed where she'll fall asleep instantly. No fuss, no bother. For her, not me.
You're going to hate me for this, but I'd go so far as to say that 85% of her waking hours she's a happy laid-back, good-natured kid. 5% of the time she is as stubborn as stubborn can be. What with the culmination of Abray and Blum genes, the kid really didn't stand a chance. Those same genes will also likely produce crooked teeth - better start saving for braces now, no doubt she's gonna need 'em. And that takes me to the last 10% - that goes to her anger problem. Yes, sweet little Em has some raging anger management issues. Like when her legs were spread eagled in the womb & we called her "Easy Emma", we now call her "Angry Emma". I'm looking into community centre classes right now. We live in a pretty angry community so that shouldn't be too challenging. Should she want something and is denied... WATCH OUT!!! The kid is out for BLOOD. Her little face contorts, goes beet red, and - get this - her little hands form two incredibly clenched little FISTS! And to top it off, she waves those little fists in the air like she's gearing up to pummel me! Or you... Most especially Adam. She doesn't seem to like him too much. We don't know why - though I think it's cuz he talks 'baby talk' to her. And like I'm sure I've probably mentioned, she's quite advanced and can't tolerate stupidity like that.
Other tidbits:
Emma cut her first tooth a couple days ago!! Just shy of her 9th bday (July 31st) the little guy finally broke through! And trust me when I tell you, it's SHARP. Did I mention I'm still breast-feeding?
Emma loves to pull herself up to a standing position on anything she can get her hands on. It started off with the huge ottoman/coffee table in the living room, but now it's everything. If she can reach it with her hands, she'll stand next to it. Unfortunately we have mostly hard-wood flooring, so when she falls backward, it kinda hurts. I guess I shouldn't be surprised if she doesn't get into the gifted program.
Toys must be interactive. If there are buttons to be pressed, lights to be blinked, music to be played, E is all over it. Stuffed animals just don't cut it anymore. Stuffed animals are for babies.
And in yet another display of being a product of Jeff & myself, she is totally turned on by the clothes hanging in her closet. Seriously. Every time we walk by, she practically leaps out of my arms to touch all her goodies that don't quite fit yet. The cutest thing, and this should tell you quite a bit about her little personality, is that she gravitates heavily toward all things red!!
Vents... oh for the love of vents... E not only looks and them and touches them, she can REMOVE them and stick her arms down the holes. Wonderful.
Swinging has been one of the high points of Emma's short-lived life thus far. As for swinging, the fast & higher the better. The kid has no fear. In that sense, she' s reminding me of Dalia, who when not tall enough to ride the adult roller-coasters at Canada's Wonderland, swore she was coming back with heels. And did. She was 6.
The other high-point has been swimming. Almost every day this summer, Emma has hit the pool with Bubbie B. She even knows the drill - when we start to head downstairs, it's time! I never said it was a tough drill. She is only 8 months old.. We still haven't dunked her - but both Jeff & Bill are dying to. And if she has been dunked, nobody has told me.
And on the subject of Bubbie B... I honestly belive Emma likes her more than me! Really. I put an exclamation point there, but I'm not laughing. The kid actually pushes me away & leaps out of my arms the second she lays eyes on my mother. HELLO??? Who feeds you?? NOT SMART, EMMA. Okay, maybe very smart. Bubbie B has a hell of a lot more money than me. Maybe the kid knows exactly what she's doing.
Lids... oh for the love of lids... Coffee lids (decaf & full-caf), tupperware lids, big lids, small lids... Lids. Ummmm.. lids.
She has just discovered that cabinets have INSIDES. Drawers too. AGH!! Looks like we have to start child-proofing. Damnit. I have to start paying attention now.
While technically this should be in next month's update, as of today Emma has discovered ELECTRICAL OUTLETS. Looks like she will be buddies with Bill after all. (He did promise her ice cream. Maybe this is just a suck-up tactic.)
Lastly, to mark the special occasion, we gave Em a couple finger fulls of raspberry jam. She loved loved loved it! Can you blame her?! Then, being on a roll, I gave her a couple dabs of ketchup from my toast (under my sunny-side up egg). Go figure, she loved that too! Then I got really carried away and gave her a tiny drop of egg yolk! The kid catapolted to Mars she was so excited. About half an hour later she got a huge rash all over her cheeks & chin. Teach me to give her three new things in 20 minutes. I have absolutely no idea what caused it. Yet another case of a mother who hasn't got a clue.
No comments:
Post a Comment